“Beyond Europe” in Early Modern European Art

An elephant from India for the pope, turbaned Muslim merchants in Venice, a samurai ambassador to European courts, and appalling cannibalism in the New World—the visual arts of Europe from the fifteenth to seventeenth century reflected Europeans’ increasing encroachment on, and interaction with, the world beyond. By considering works by artists such as Bellini, Dürer, Raphael, Bernini, and Rubens, we will examine how Europeans depicted peoples and animals from Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and the Americas in the early modern period. We will also examine the artistic exchanges between Europe and beyond as consequences of trade and missionary activities.